Hipster Tipster: From Milan to Munich via Lisbon this week

Your resident Europhile is back with the best value bets from this Saturday

I’m currently in the midst of the planning stages for my latest adventure – a two-week trip on the Eurorail as part of an excursion that will see me take in Italy, Spain and Portugal but while daddy is only too happy to pay for the trip itself, I’m having to stump up the money for my food and drink.

To mark my latest unauthorised holiday (I’ve told my boss I am suffering from exhaustion) I’ve got five tips featuring some of the fallen giants of European football – Marseille, Milan and Lisbon alongside the always-reliable Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

Is there a finer sight than the image of Thomas Muller screaming in joy/agony after yet another goal for the Bavarians? Not for my money and after smashing Paderborn 4-0 a few weeks back I am predicting a heavy win over a Hannover side that previously lost to the newly-promoted team.

When he’s not rowing with the Argentina football federation or even the builders at Athletic Bilbao, Bielsa is actually pretty good at winning football matches. Marseille have won six in a row, in fact, with four of their last five coming by a margin of two goals or more.

The Catalans may have come undone against a Zlatan-less PSG in midweek but with a recent 6-0 win against Granada and a 5-0 triumph away at Levante fresh in the mind, they should cruise to another high-scoring win against the side they beat 10-0 on aggregate last term.

Filippo Inzaghi started well at the San Siro but the Rossoneri need a win after two disappointing draws. I expect it to come against a Chievo side with one win to their name all season – that should get Pippo screaming like a madman on the sidelines again!

Jose Mourinho may have got the better of Lisbon in the Champions League but they remain my ‘Special One’ to win this Saturday. Heh. Visiting second from bottom Penafiel, Sporting beat Gil Vicente 4-0 in their last away outing in the Portuguese top-flight.

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Educated in the three Rs – Romario, Ronaldo and Roberto Baggio – from an early age our resident Europhile football fan loves nothing more than sitting back in an IKEA POANG recliner with a selection of Serie A, Bundesliga, Eredivisie and Ligue 1 football at his disposal. All thoughts are his own, though some can also be attributed to the great 21st century mind that is Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He would struggle to write good copy on a rainy Tuesday night in Stoke.

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